“Every minute that CPR and defibrillation are delayed, the chances of survival decrease by up to 10 per cent. And if someone has been defibrillated before emergency services get there, they have a 62 per cent increased chance of survival.”

Apart from connecting cardiac arrest patients with reliable & trained responders, this app also connects people with a nearby defibrillator, a machine that starts the heart beating normally after a heart attack, by giving it an electric shock..

Ambulance Victoria is encouraging people who owns or oversees a defibrillator to make sure it’s registered with them.

“We have 4000 defibrillators registered across the state, but we think that’s about one in five of the ones that are out there,” said Mr Ray.

“There’s potentially up to 15,000 others that we just don’t know about, and they are all over the place.”

Off-duty professionals signed up to the app will be able to accept the alert as well as provide first aid before emergency crews arrive.

The app is going to focus on time-sensitive medical emergencies, especially heart attacks, & Ambulance Victoria believes it will create an “army” of trained, life-saving good Samaritans.

“It’s about ensuring we can get a trained bystander to someone in cardiac arrest as quickly as possible, because minutes count,” said Tony Walker, Ambulance Victoria’s chief executive.

“An army of life savers, if you like, who are out there able to respond and support our paramedics.”